Dancers in the Classroom

In the late 1870s and early 1880s, Degas painted a series of wide horizontal canvases showing ballerinas stretching and resting in a practice room. These works capture the dancers' grace, concentration, and physical exhaustion. The artist constructed the composition of this painting with great care-the position of the outstretched leg of the girl adjusting her stocking, for example, was changed at least nine times. The expanse of empty floor in the foreground and the plunging perspective are particularly daring.

Credit: Acquired by Sterling and Francine Clark before 1955